EXCLUSIVE: Joe Ballarini has been set by Walden Media to rewrite Atlantis 7, a thriller in which an elite military Navy SEAL force attempts to find the mythical city of Atlantis. A military code breaker seeks out his absentee father, who may hold the secret to unlock the clues that make an Atlantis discovery possible, which is key to saving the world. Dean Parisot is attached to direct, and Shawn Levy’s 21 Laps is producing with The Gotham Group. Adam F. Goldberg wrote the first draft adaptation of M. Zachary Sherman’s graphic novel Seal Team 7 and Robert Nelson Jacobs did a rewrite.

Ballarini sold the spec Lockdown At Franklin High to Sony, and has been a steady writer at Fox Animation on such films as Ice Age 4, Leafmen and others. He also scripted The Resident for producer Jerry Bruckheimer and Disney and Turbo at DreamWorks. Ballarini is repped by Paradigm and Apostle’s George Heller. Pic gives Walden Media another large scale adventure film after Journey 2: The Mysterious Island grossed over $300 million worldwide.